A ‘Good Frame of Mind’ is the AmericanFrame.com company blog where we write about all things art & framing. Here you will find a range of articles on frame design, framing tips and techniques, printing tutorials and answers to your ‘frequently asked’ customer service questions. We love to interact with our audience so we hope you’ll join our community by subscribing and commenting on the blog.

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Friday, June 29, 2018

Art on the Street: Preparing for Summer Art Shows

For art lovers,
there’s nothing quite like summer art shows. They let attendees see a variety
of works, meet the artists who create them
and bring their favorite pieces home.

And for Toledo
watercolor artist Katie Heft, they give her a rare treat: the looks on the
faces of people who pass her booth.

“There
have been dozens of people to glance in my tent, keep walking, stop, backpedal;
look again, and smile or laugh,” Heft said. “I love those reactions. That tells
me I'm doing a good job making them believable. I wouldn't be able to see those
reactions over a computer.”
Heft creates detailed art featuring imaginary creatures like rattlesnake-kangaroo
hybrids and raven-sea urchin mashups. She
primarily sells them on her Etsy shop, but said the exchanges
leave her craving buyer feedback.
So last year, she journeyed beyond the world of anonymous online sales to participate in art shows, showing her work at University of Toledo's Art on the Mall, Wild
About Art at the Toledo Zoo, and The Point Place Art Walk on the Bay.

But attending
art shows didn’t exactly prepare her for participating in one, especially when
it came to her tent.

“At my first
show, I realized that by the end of the day, my paintings were weighing down my
tent and almost snapped the metal that was holding the canopy up,” Heft said.

Luckily, Heft
sold enough prints at her first show to afford a new tent. A large part of art
shows, she said, is investing money in yourself and your art.

“Investing in
yourself is the most intimidating thing in the world,” according to Heft. “You need
to make sure you have enough inventory to keep your tent full of work. This can mean spending hundreds or even
thousands of dollars before you even know how you will do at the festival.
Terrifying. You just have to believe in
yourself and in your art.”

Considering renting a booth at your first art show? Here are some other things to keep in
mind.

Have Plenty of Prints

Heft’s
originals are large and cumbersome to
haul to and from shows. So she instead settled on prints, which are more
popular among art show buyers.

“I
take my large paintings and shrink them down to standard sizes like 11x14, 16x20, and 22x28, which
people are much more ready to buy,” Heft said.

Heft
asked her family and friends to point out their favorite pieces of hers and
stocked up of smaller size prints of those, as
most shoppers opt for easily portable artwork.

“American
Frame is the only place that I've found that has quality archival papers and a
fantastic print team,” Heft said. “If something is wrong with the image they will notify you and will even do touch-ups! All of my prints look amazing and I know they will last for years to come.” American Frame offers volume discounts
starting at quantities of five for items of the same size and material, as well
as museum-quality, giclee printing services so you can prepare for the show quickly.Another helpful tip? Stock up on business cards. Shoppers may not be
ready to buy from you at the fair, but
may contact you later to buy existing art or commission you for a specific
project.

Research the Fair

Before
your first show, attend as many as possible. Get a feel for the kind of art on
offer, as well as any tips you may be able to apply to your own booth. “It helps to walk around and see all the different ways people display and
present their art. There are always ways to improve your display, your pitch,
and your product,” Heft said.

Collage artist Steven Wipfli has been selling his
work at art shows for six years. He said the look of the booth is one of the
most important factors.
“The immediate visual impact of a
booth is very, very important,” he said. “A potential customer must be drawn intothe space,
sometimes from quite a distance away.”
Wipfli believes a well-coordinated booth can
draw interest, while a random-looking one can scare potential shoppers away.
“Is the work about color,” he said. “Is it black and white photography? Is it
natural-toned ceramics? A hodgepodge of many different styles, techniques, and media does not usually draw visitors in
to look more closely. Consistent framing is one way to establish that look.”Wipfli achieves a consistent frame look by shopping only at American
frame and limiting his purchases to a few complimentary collections.“I frame with only two or three
different frame styles and colors,” he said. “My matting width is consistent and I use three mat colors. This establishes an identifiable look which,
even from a distance, defines the work and give the patron a quick idea about
what’s in store.”

Talk to Other Artists

Don’t
view other artists as your competition, but as an important resource. Don’t be
afraid to ask questions about the way they prepare for a show, Heft said.
“Most everyone has been in your position before and
everyone just wants to have a good time and bring art and smiles to people's
lives,” she said. “They may also have great tips on new shows or ways to get
more involved in the art community! Be interactive with your customers and try
to stay positive regardless of the weather or the clientele.”
Share your art show prep with us. Tweet a photo of your prep process, or your
booth to @AmericanFrame using #AmericanFramed or email it to Customer.Service@AmericanFrame.com.

Laura Jajko is President of American Frame and a longtime contributor to "A Good Frame of Mind." Here, she delights in bonding with others over her love of art and framing. With more than 40 years of practical experience, she brings a unique perspective in a straightforward style that she hopes will spark lots of interesting and relevant dialogue in our online community. Connect with Laura directly here on the blog or follow her on Twitter @LauraJajko.

1 comment:

As a printmaker who creates all original fine art printmaking I find this article rather misleading. First of all you are creating reproductions of these artists work and not real prints. It would be great since your market is artists if you could use the appropriate terminology. The word prints should only be used for work that is created using a hand pulled printmaking process and not when something is printed on a machine using a digital file. In addition many people continue to actively visit fine art shows and purchase original art. To say that the market leans toward reproductions does a tremendous disservice to both existing artists but also to new artists who are thinking about getting out there and sharing their work.